Chapter 32#
This was the first time Yan Heqing had contacted Lu Lin since adding him as a friend.
The light inside the car was dim, with the faint light from the parking lot shining in through the windshield.
Lu Lin unlocked his phone and tapped directly into the chat bar.
There were two messages.
The first one was a mini-program.
The second one was—
[Sorry Mr. Lu, I started my final exams today and only now have time to prepare a return gift. Thank you for your Cube of Light, I like it very much. I hope you will also like this gift.]
Lu Lin’s eyebrows twitched slightly. A gift?
He tapped on the mini-program.
The phone screen instantly went black. First, there was the sound of waves, mixed with a few cries of seagulls. Then, a blue band of starlight appeared, gradually flowing into an ocean.
Soon, a cry similar to a baby’s broke the silence. A white, shimmering dolphin, a beluga whale, suddenly leaped out of the starlit sea surface. It was agile and ethereal, its tail fin hooking up waves, and stopped in mid-air.
Immediately following were countless calls of different fish.
From the head of the beluga whale, it transformed bit by bit into golden fish. Different varieties of fish: carp, grass carp, silver carp, snakehead, black carp, hairtail, sardines…
There were even crabs and conchs. Countless types of fish fell slowly from the sky, dropping back into the ocean, splashing up specks of golden light.
…
It didn’t last too long, less than a minute. The program ended and returned to the WeChat interface.
The car returned to silence again.
After a while, a soft chuckle broke the silence.
This was the most interesting gift he had ever received.
Lu Lin typed a reply, “Are you studying software engineering now?”
Yan Heqing had just washed a box of blueberries. The washed blueberries looked like grains of crystal-clear blue-purple pearls.
Yan Heqing sat down in front of the sofa, put down the blueberries, didn’t type, and sent a voice message.
The voice message popped up. Lu Lin clicked on it. The young man’s voice was clean and clear, just like the whale call in the mini-program he made, possessing the most primitive purity. It was neither impetuous nor noisy, especially in the silent snowy night. The young man said: “Yes, Mr. Lu.”
Lu Lin suddenly remembered that day at the welfare institute, in the dim dormitory, the scent of plum blossoms on the young man’s hair tips.
Yan Heqing was like a white plum blossom blooming in a snowy night, even his voice had the scent of plum blossoms.
He wanted to continue hearing the young man speak.
Lu Lin initiated a voice chat.
Yan Heqing grabbed a handful of blueberries. Just as he put them in his mouth, the voice chat invitation popped up. He didn’t have time to chew the blueberries and answered first, “Mr. Lu?”
Lu Lin adjusted the backrest, leaned back, and looked at the snow falling rustlingly on the windshield. His features softened a bit, “What are you eating?”
“Blueberries.” Yan Heqing swallowed the blueberries with difficulty, “I grabbed a handful, it was a bit much.”
“You like blueberries?”
“Yes, they are good for the eyes.” Yan Heqing grabbed another handful of blueberries, “It’s very quiet on your side. Are you fishing?”
Lu Lin was in a very relaxed state now. He unbuttoned his coat with one hand, “Thanks to your bait, a big harvest today.”
“I still have a lot. I’ll bring you a few more bottles next time.”
“Okay.” Although he wanted to listen to the young man’s voice a bit longer, Lu Lin still said, “Hanging up now. Rest early, and good luck with your exam tomorrow.”
Pausing slightly, “I like your gift very much.”
Yan Heqing also replied politely: “I’m glad you like it.”
Hanging up the phone, there were still seven or eight blueberries left on the plate. Yan Heqing grabbed them all and put them in his mouth.
The final exam season was intermittent and lasted for a week before ending. The last exam for software engineering was in the morning.
After the exam, Yan Heqing walked out of the examination room. After walking a few steps, someone called him from behind, “Student Yan.”
Yan Heqing stopped. A boy ran up. He was very tall, half a head taller than Yan Heqing, and had a Mohawk haircut.
Yan Heqing remembered this hairstyle. It was his classmate who sat next to him in the first class of the semester.
Fu Helang’s eyes clearly lit up when he saw Yan Heqing. He stopped in front of Yan Heqing. Even with his wheat-colored skin, a conspicuous faint blush could be seen on his face, “Long time no see. The teacher said you took sick leave. Is your health better?”
Yan Heqing nodded, “I’m better.”
Fu Helang had liked Yan Heqing since the beginning of the semester. In the first class for freshmen, when he walked into the classroom, the young man was sitting quietly in the most remote corner, but he still noticed him at a glance.
Not only him, but other classmates also noticed Yan Heqing.
Yan Heqing’s clothes were extremely ordinary, he was thin, and his face was excessively pale. Despite this, you could spot him in the crowd at first glance, noticing only him.
He was so dazzling that even in the dark, he shone brightly.
However, there seemed to be an invisible barrier around Yan Heqing, clearly rejecting others’ approach.
Only Fu Helang brazenly sat in the seat next to him.
Fu Helang was a carefree big boy, but this time, he didn’t dare to pursue Yan Heqing rashly. He didn’t know Yan Heqing’s orientation.
Fu Helang was still hesitating in his secret crush when he realized that Yan Heqing had temporarily suspended his studies. He heard that he would come back for the final exams. Unfortunately, they weren’t in the same examination room for the previous exams, and he finally ran into him today.
He still had one big question left undone, but Yan Heqing had already handed in his paper. Fu Helang followed suit without hesitation.
If he didn’t take a few more looks, he would have to wait another winter break to see Yan Heqing.
The simple conversation ended as soon as it began. Seeing that Yan Heqing was about to leave, Fu Helang touched the back of his bald head, thought for a long time, and finally squeezed out a reason, “There is a lecture at two o’clock in the afternoon. It seems to be some big shot who is the only one in the history of Peking University to get straight A’s, and also the boss of a big company.”
Yan Heqing’s footsteps paused slightly.
The only student in the history of Peking University to get straight A’s was Lu Lin.
He stopped and asked politely: “Is it in the Grand Auditorium?”
——
A Porsche drove out of T University.
Lin Fengyi glanced at Lin Fengzhi in the passenger seat. Ever since Lin Fengzhi suddenly left for something at Xie Yunjie’s wedding banquet last time, he had been depressed during this period and didn’t eat well.
Lin Fengyi freed a hand and touched Lin Fengzhi’s head, “Exams are over. What do you want to eat?”
Lin Fengzhi shook his head, “No appetite.”
“Still no appetite, looking like you’re heartbroken,” Lin Fengyi said casually.
Lin Fengzhi’s whole body shook.
Lin Fengyi was originally teasing Lin Fengzhi, but catching a glimpse of his reaction, Lin Fengyi felt like a hammer had smashed heavily on his chest. He parked the car on the side of the road, his brows furrowed, “Really heartbroken?”
“…No…” Lin Fengzhi still wanted to hide it.
“Don’t lie in front of me.” Lin Fengyi suppressed his anger, “You haven’t succeeded once.”
Lin Fengzhi had been holding it in for a few days. Anyway, it didn’t matter anymore. His anger also rose, “Yes, I am heartbroken! The person I like doesn’t like me. Are you satisfied now!”
His eyes were red when he felt aggrieved. Lin Fengyi’s heart softened again. He irritably wanted to find a cigarette pack but gave up halfway. He gritted his teeth and cursed, “Who is so blind to dare to reject you!”
Lin Fengzhi immediately retorted, “He is not blind! You are not allowed to curse him!”
Lin Fengyi laughed in anger, “What kind of celestial beauty is she, for you to protect her like this.”
Lin Fengzhi bit his lip. It wasn’t a celestial beauty, it was his male god. But it was fine if Lin Fengyi misunderstood. Lin Fengzhi suddenly turned around, grabbed Lin Fengyi’s arm, and said pitifully: “Brother, you have dated so many people. Teach me, how can I make the other person like me.”
Lin Fengyi’s face changed immediately. Did Yan Heqing send the video to Lin Fengzhi? “What nonsense are you talking about? When did I date many people?”
“Don’t try to fool me either.” Lin Fengzhi muttered, “You often stay out all night. Don’t think I don’t know.”
So it was about this. Lin Fengyi breathed a sigh of relief, “Adult social engagements, you don’t understand yet. Alright, don’t change the subject. You are still young…”
“I’ve been an adult for a long time!” Lin Fengzhi interrupted him, “Just say whether you’ll teach me or not. If you don’t, I’ll go ask someone else.”
Lin Fengyi couldn’t do anything with him. Although he really didn’t want Lin Fengzhi to fall in love, and no one was worthy of his precious brother, seeing Lin Fengzhi’s stubborn look, he changed his tone, “Teach, of course I’ll teach.”
Lin Fengzhi’s eyes immediately regained their luster. He looked up at Lin Fengyi expectantly, “Brother, tell me quickly. You are the best to me!”
At this moment, their faces were very close. Lin Fengyi’s heart itched. He turned his face away unnaturally and coughed, “A fierce woman is afraid of a pestering man. No matter how fierce a woman is, she can’t withstand a man’s persistent pestering. You just pester her for dear life.”
The more Lin Fengzhi listened, the more reasonable it sounded.
That’s right. Since Lu Lin didn’t remember him, he would just appear in front of Lu Lin more often and make Lu Lin remember him!
Why on earth had he been lamenting and looking miserable these past few days!
Lin Fengzhi suddenly slapped his forehead hard.
“What are you doing?” Lin Fengyi quickly grabbed his hand, “What if it hurts?”
“I’m so stupid to have struggled for so long!” Lin Fengzhi showed a smile. He stepped forward and hugged Lin Fengyi, “Thank you, brother. You are so good to me!”
There was a faint scent of perfume behind Lin Fengzhi’s ear, like pine needles after snow. Lin Fengyi was a little dazed and still savoring it when Lin Fengzhi let go of him, grabbed his schoolbag, and got out of the car, “I have something to do, I’m leaving first!”
It took Lin Fengyi a while to come back to his senses. He rolled down the window and wanted to call Lin Fengzhi back to drive him, but Lin Fengzhi was already gone.
Lin Fengzhi ran very fast and soon hailed a taxi.
He got in the car, closed the door, and said to the driver: “To Peking University!”
Lu Muchi had said that the day before the holiday, Lu Lin was going to give a lecture at Peking University, which was today! He took out his phone and called his classmate at Peking University, “I’ll be at your school soon. Lend me your student ID. Yes, wait for me at the main gate.”
At the Lu Group headquarters, Lu Lin finished his work.
The assistant came in to report the afternoon schedule, “At two o’clock in the afternoon, you have a one-hour lecture at the invitation of the president of Peking University.”
Lu Lin raised his wrist to check the time. It was 12:30. He closed his computer, stood up, and pressed the internal line, “Prepare the car.”
The assistant followed Lu Lin out and suddenly thought of something, “President Lu, the school for next year’s Outstanding Student Scholarship hasn’t been finalized yet. The director of Peking University has contacted me several times. We have sponsored Peking University for three consecutive years. Do you think we should switch to T University this year? T University’s media department controls the discourse power of the national media. I think sponsoring T University would be beneficial for them to promote the company’s positive image.”
The two entered the elevator. The assistant pressed the button for the 1st floor. Lu Lin asked: “How long is left?”
The assistant calculated, “Until school starts in the spring, about two months.”
“Put it on next month’s agenda.”
“Yes.”
The elevator soon reached the first floor. The door opened, and Lu Lin stepped out.
After getting in the car, the assistant received a call. He turned back and reported to Lu Lin, “President Lu, it’s a call from the director of Peking University. He said your lecture is too popular. The Grand Auditorium is full now, and no one else can get in.”
In the back seat, Lu Lin closed his eyes to rest and didn’t react. The assistant raised the soundproof partition and turned back quietly.
At the same time, Yan Heqing handed his student ID to the ticket inspector and followed the flow of people into the Grand Auditorium.